Gerard Da Cunha

GERARD DA CUNHA VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

GENEVIEVE NORONHA FOURTH YEAR B. ARCH

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1. History

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2. Biography

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3. Case Study 1: Houses of Goa Museum

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4. Case Study 2: Nisha’s School of Goa

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5. Case study 3: Nritya Gram, Bangalore

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6. Other Famous Projects

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7. Bibliography

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CONTENTS

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HISTORY  GERARD DA CUNHA is a well-known name in modern Indian architecture.  He prefers working with natural stone and his unique projects are seen all over the country.  He received the Commendation Award in Rural Architecture, Designer of the Year Award and the Prime Minister’s National Award for Excellence in Urban Planning and Design. Da Cunha’s Goa based architectural firm Architects Autonomous specializes in eco-friendly, site specific architecture.  The quintessential architect was conducting exhibitions on the houses of Goa as his contribution towards the renaissance.  In a short time span, it reached such a zenith that he took it even worldwide  At that level of saturation, he needed to put the entire work under a single roof.  The architect conceives that the Goans were looking for a new identity and so embarked on the experiment in architecture to produce something new and unseen anywhere in the world. And this saw the birth of the ‘Museum – Houses of Goa’.

BIOGRAPHY  Gerard da Cunha is an Indian architect based in Goa. He is an alumnus of the prestigious School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi. He is known for utilizing locally available materials and traditional construction techniques in harmony with its ecosystem.  Gerard runs his architecture firm 'Architecture Autonomous' in Goa, India. His projects are spread across the country that include resorts, townships, institutions and even private residences.  Gerard da Cunha maintains his practice from the old Portuguese colony of Goa, which he considers has a novel history in that it was the site of the ‘first sustained encounter between the East and the West’.  Gerard da Cunha is identified more with preserving Goa’s heritage, he’s been renowned equally for being one of India’s first few green architects, one who believes in utilising locally available material in harmony with its ecosystem.  His design for the Odissi gurukul Nrityagram in Bengaluru, the initiative of dancer Protima Gauri Bedi, is iconic.

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 Built in stark stone found in the area, it is very different from traditional Goan architecture that is his mainstay.  This adaptability got da Cunha an award for rural architecture.  As did his design for a Jindal steel township in Karnataka called Vidyanagar that won the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Urban Planning and Design.  Five years ago, da Cunha was hired to restore Goa’s oldest fort — the Reis Magos.

Houses of Goa Museum

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 "Houses of Goa", a unique museum by architect Gerard da Cunha, encapsulates for posterity the phenomenal outcome of the combination of eastern and western architectural styles.  The museum is designed to look like a ship, with traffic flowing on all sides of the building.  Strangely enough it is in the shape of a triangle and resembles a ship. Viewed from the outside it is a mystery, but as you begin your visit, it slowly unfolds its charms.

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Plan& Section of Museum

Spiral Staircase Spiral staircase done in laterite stone.

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Nisha’s School of Goa  Shiksha Niketan stands out with its ideal campus for a primary school in Goa. It’s like a whole new world meant only for kids.  Some classrooms have tiny entrance openings where adults would have to stoop to enter.  Also, there are no closed areas in the school so as to enable easy accessibility to each child.  The school is constructed in fine brick architecture.

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Nritya Gram, Bangalore  Nrityagram is India's first modern Gurukul (residential school) for Indian classical dances and an intentional community in the form of a dance village, set up by Odissi dancer Protima Gauri in 1990.  The residential school offers training in Indian classical dance forms, Odissi, Mohiniattam, Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, Kathakali and Manipuri, eight hours a day, six days a week for seven years, following the ancient Guru-shishya tradition.  Designed by famous Indian architect Gerard da Cunha, the community is situated near Hesaraghatta Lake 30 km away from Bangalore. The use of local techniques and construction materials is seen which reflects the local traditions.

 Temple at the entrance of Nritya gram.  Designed and built by Ray Meeker in 1998.  It is fashioned from the raw mud of the locality and was fired after it was built.  It is decorated with panels depicting the elements, dance motifs, mudras and designs costumes and jewels.  Inside is a granite rock scooped out to hold water and a flame that stays lit.  At present the area in front of the temple is used as a yoga centre and also used for meditation.

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Guest Cottages Constitutes of thatched roof and rammed earth constructon.

Cantilevered staircase done in stone and (right) semi-covered seating area .

Grounds and gardens of the Nrityagram Dance Community

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Other Famous Projects • • • •

Library of Hampi’s Kannada University Kutiram Tourist Resort of Bangalore JVSL Township in Torangallu Day Care Center

Bibliography 1. http://www.nbmcw.com/articles/architects-project-watch/654-goasarchitectural-prodigy.html 2. Jump up^ http://www.nbmcw.com/articles/architects-project-watch/654-goasarchitectural-prodigy.html 3. Jump up^ http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ad.563/abstract 4. Jump up^ http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-when-architects-graduateto-kindergarten-2095348 5. http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Layout/Includes/pastissues2/ArtWin.as p?From=Search&Key=TOIGO %2F2008%2F07%2F23%2F21%2FAr02101.xml&CollName=TOI_GOA_ARC HIVE_2008&DOCID=24133&Keyword=(%3Cmany%3E%3Cstem %3Efort)&skin=pastissues2&AppName=2&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T 6. Jump up^ http://www.nbmcw.com/articles/architects-project-watch/654-goasarchitectural-prodigy.html 7. Jump up^ http://m.rediff.com/news/2003/nov/10spec.htm 8. Jump up^ http://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/jul/12/arundhati-roybooker-prize-politics

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